Cost now estimated at $3,890,000 The King George Board of Supervisors and School Board OK’d a stadium design at a joint meeting last week on Nov. 30. Concept drawings are posted at our website, journalpress.com. That stadium will be constructed adjacent to King George High School and will hold 2,000 spectators — 1,500 home seats and 500 visitor seats. The field size will accommodate competition football, soccer, field hockey and future lacrosse. It will have a support building to contain team rooms, concessions and restrooms. It will have a press box and two ticket booth entrances.

HIGHER COST ESTIMATE The estimated cost of the design has jumped by more than half a million dollars since elements of the design were last reviewed by both boards in August. David Barlow of CHA said the cost estimate jumped from the original estimate of $3,332,000 to $3,890,000, citing three reasons. CHA said the athletic director at the high school, Alex Fisher, asked for some permanent weather-tight storage to be added to the project because he was short on storage. As a result of Fisher’s request, a 1,000 square foot building could be constructed under the bleachers at an estimated cost of $125,000. Supervisors directed that the additional storage be bid as an alternate, so a decision could be made based on actual bid costs later, depending on the total cost of the project. Another reason for a higher cost estimate is due to larger bathrooms and additional plumbing and fixtures. Adding seven more men’s and 11 more women’s results in an estimate of $275,000 more. The larger bathrooms had been approved for addition at a previous joint meeting. The plan to increase the size of the bathrooms is going forward despite an objection by School Board member Renee Parker, who argued for the additional storage instead of more restroom area. The third reason for a higher cost estimate is due to modifications and additional engineering required to the foundations. That’s because some unsuitable soils were discovered under some of the grandstands and the support building. The additional engineering and foundation work is estimated at $158,000. Supervisors said the county had earmarked about $3 million for the project from interest accrued on other School Board capital projects, particularly the $42 million borrowed for the high school. County Administrator Travis Quesenberry said a report on the amount of cash available would be provided to supervisors at an upcoming meeting. Supervisor Chairman Dale Sisson noted that the county has funds in place to go to bid. He also said the county has a history of projects coming in under cost estimates. That’s partly due to value engineering being employed.

MORE DESIGN DETAILS The stadium seating will be designed to be expandable from 2,000 to 4,000 if/when a future installation is done (3,000 for home and 1,000 for visitors). The price includes a natural turf playing field surface with synthetic turf to be requested to be bid as alternate. The CHA rep said that the cost estimate is based on natural grass field estimated at about $200,000. Barlow said synthetic turf is currently estimated at about $700,000. That means switching to synthetic turf could be expected to add another half million dollars to the cost, if that alternate is chosen after bids are in. The design details include sports field lighting, including emergency lighting, a public address system and controlled access to the facility by perimeter fencing. Another feature that is included is a 20-foot wide pedestrian path between the high school and middle school, which can be used for vehicle access in case of emergency. And of course, the support building has a flat roof, which seems to be a tradition in King George. PROJECT TIMELINE A project timeline has not yet been provided. The CHA rep said his firm could have the design complete and ready for bid in about six weeks. But that was an optimistic time estimate, as it does not include value engineering that will be performed after the initial engineering plans are ready. In addition, a site plan must be submitted, reviewed by county planning staff and then go to the Planning Commission for review and approval. School Board member Mike Rose wanted to know how many more seasons that Hunter Field would need to be in use for high school sports. It was suggested that the division plan on using Hunter Field for at least one more season and possibly two.

HUNTER FIELD There was again talk of turning Hunter Field over to the county after a new stadium is completed. The idea is to have Parks & Recreation administer its use, including leasing it for community teams, including the King George Youth Athletic Association. “Our board is going to want to talk about the Hunter Field piece, too,” Sisson said. “After this gets up and running I would see that as a future Parks & Recreation resource.” School Board members Rick Randall and Parker agreed, with Parker saying, “We wouldn’t need it; it’s all yours.

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MIS/GRAPHICSDrue Murray540-709-7288This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.